NATIONWIDE (WOWO): Last week, credit reporting agency Equifax confirmed that hackers stole data from their servers that may impact as many as 143-million Americans.

This week, affected consumers can start signing up for one year of free ID theft prevention from Equifax as a way to protect themselves. Richard Cella of Ipswich Bay Advisors, a financial services firm, tells WOWO News that’s not enough, thanks to Equifax waiting months to let people know about the breach:

“It not only took them months to notify you, it took three months to figure it out while the hackers had their way with your data,” Cella says.

That’s not all; Equifax initially included fine print that waived your right to take legal action against them if you take them up on that protection, a provision the company now says it has removed.

Cella says it’s a good idea to sign up for some identity-protection services:

“The key thing is, you want to be sure you’re made aware of any attempt to use your identity and your credit.”

Equifax is offering consumers a year of free ID theft prevention through their website, EquifaxSecurity2017.com, which is where you can also find out if your information was compromised.